Water heater



[Lm VW.. @@HNEPF WATER H g ma EATEH Filed April 2 1925 Feb. 14, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS W. SCENEPP, F HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO LEWIS F. DAVIS, 0F HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA.

WATER HEATER.

Application led April 2, 1923.

My inventionrelates to a water heater of the type generally used for domestic purposes and which is heated by the combustion of gas or liquid hydrocarbon.

The principal objects of my 1n vent1 on are, to generally improve upon and simpllfy the construction of the existing forms of similar water heaters, to provide a water heater that will not, in opration, deposit 110 lime, scale or incrustations upon the metal surfaces with which the water, while being heatedrcomes in contact, and further to roduce a water heater that is characterized y inherent simplicity, low cost of production, minimum fuel consumption and rapidity of operation.

With the foregoing and other objects 1n view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section taken through the center of a water heater of my improved construction.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. 4

Fi 3 is an enlarged vertical section of a bale member that is located in the heat flue of the heater. l l

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken through the center of the burner that forms a part of my improved water heater.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4. A

Referringby numerals to the accompanyin drawings, 10 designates a substantially cy indrical, upright tank that supported by a suitable base 11 and havinggat its lower end, aburnechamber 12. "1"

The wall of the tank to one side of the burner chamber is provided with an opening 13 that is normally closed by a door 1'4.

An opening 15 is formed in t e center. of the head 16, atpthe lower end of the tank andsecured to said lower head around said opening is the lower end of a tube 17.

This tube formsthe head flue of the heater and it extends upwardly through the center of the tank and its upper end projects a short distance above the center of the head 18 at the top of said tank.

Spirally disposed u on the tube 17 is a wire 19, the coils of w ich are spaced three l' nr four inches apart and enclosing said Serial No. 629,264.

spirally disposed wire and fitting snugly thereupon is a tube 20. As is shown in the drawing the coiled wire 19 snugly engaging the flue 17 around which it is coiled and also snugly fitting within, the tube 2.0 serves to` support said tube on 'the flue.

The lower end of this tube 20 terminates three or four inches above the head 16 and likewise the upper end of said tube terminates a few inches below head 18. Thus both ends of tube 20 are open and 1n communication with the water space within the tank and the arrangement of.

the wire 19 between the tubes 17 and 20 forms a narrow spirally disposed duct or passageway 21 around the cent-rally arranged heating llue, which duct extends from the lower portion of the water space within the tank of the upper portion of said space. Thus water that enters the lower end of the spirally dis osed duct or passageway will be heate in its travel upwardly`through said duct or passageway, and the heated water will discharge from the upper end of said duct at a point adjacent to the top of the tank and in a plane just below the water level therein.

Suitably supported within tube 17 is an axially Aarranged rod` 22 and positioned therecn and suitably spaced apart are inverted cone shaped bale members 23.

These baille members are designed to direct the heated air and products of conibus` tion that rise `through the tube 17, outwardly against the inner surface of said tube.

Leading from the upper end of tube 17 is a stack 'or vent pipe 24.

Leading from a suitable source of water supply through the upper head 18 of the tantra-nddownwardly t rough the latter, is

a cold water supply`pipe'25andmleadulgi from the upper end of the tank is a pipe 26 that conveys the heated water to the points of use.

The 'burner utilized with my improved water heater and which is illustrated i`n det-ail in Figs. 4 and'y 5 includes a tubular burner body 27 that is slo ted lengthwise to form a series of narrow )et o enings 28.

Positioned on to of this bo y is a ca 29 and arranged wit in the tubular body and spaced a slight distance from the inner surface of the wall thereof is a tubular member 30 of reticulated material, preferably line wire netting.

This reticulated member serves to effect a thorough mixing of the gas and air passing through the burner body and to prevent dust and like foreign substance from enterino the slots 28. 1

lhe lower end of the burner bod is connected by a reducing nipple 31, to t 1e upper end of a small tubular member 32 having a flaring or bell-shaped lower end 33.

Arranged on the end of a gas supply tube 34 that enters the chamber 12 is a gas regulating valve 35 having a jet nozzle 36 that projects upwardly into the bell-shaped lower end of tube 32.

The burneris'suitably supported in the lower end of the tubular flue 17 as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1.

Gas issuing from jet nozzle 36 flows upwardly through tube 32, thereby drawing air into the bell-shaped lower end lof said tube, which air mixes with the gas and produces a highly combustible mixture that burns upon issuing from the narrow slots 28 in the body of the burner.

The heated air and products of combustion from the burner pass upwardly through tube 17 and the baffle members 23 therein, tend to deflect said heated air and products of combustion outwardly against the inner surface of said tube.

Thus as said tube is heated throughout its entire length the relatively thin wall of water immediately surrounding saidl tube, or the water within the narrow s irally disposed chamber 21 will be rapi ly heated, thereby producing a circulation of the water through said chamber 21, from the open lower end of the enclosing tube 20 to the open upper end thereof.

The water thus heated is discharged into the upper portion of the chamber within tank 16 and simultaneously, the relatively cool water will be drawn from the lower portion ot said chamber into the open lower end of the spirally disposed duct 21.

@bviously the body of water. in the tank 10 absorbs a certain amount of heat from the thin volume of water traversing the d Sprl duct lland this absorption or transfer of heat units materially increases the rapidity with lwhich the entire body of water is heated.

My improved water heater is designed to function only for the heating of water and not for the generation of steam, and for this reason and the fact that the heating flue and the thin wall of water that directl surrounds said due are surrounded by a re ativel large body of water, there is an entire a sence of lime deposits or incrustations on the surfaces with which the water makes contact.

Tn the operation of my heater, it is to be noted that the volume of water contained at any one time within the spiral duct is small.

as compared with the total volume of water in the tank and the total volume of water eventually to be completely heated to a predetermined temperature. In heaters that embody simply a tank and a flue extending through it, the whole body of water is virtually heated at one time; that is, the whole body of water is slowly and gradually heated from normal temperature upto the predetermined temperature desired for the hot water, and consequently no hot water at the desired temperature can be withdrawn from the tank until the whole body is heated to that temperature.

In tank heaters, it is impractical and uneconomical to supply sutlicient heat to raise the whole body of water to the desired hot water temperature in a short period of timeusually the time` period is fifteen to twenty minutes or more. ln my construction it will be noted that the water is heated in the spiral duct in comparatively small quantities and thus small quantities are, therefore, heated to a comparativelyv high temperature. The spiral duct, restricted but uninterrupted keeps this small body of water in direct contact with the heating flue long enough to heat it to or somewhat above the hot water temperature desired. The water, which flows by convection through the spiral duct, flows smoothly and uniformly andrdischaiges smoothly and uniformly into the upper part of the tank, and, of course, into the waterin the upper part of the tank, the tank always being full of water. This uniform `iow of hot water into the upper part of the tank does not materially disturb the upper part of the water body and does not agitate the water body as a whole. The result, therefore, is that cold water is drawn from the bottom of the tank, passed through thel spiral duct, heated and delivered into the upper part of the tank where it remains. As the heating progresses. the hot water line so to speak, moves down in the-tankuntil the whole tank is heated. At any time, however, a s mall quantity of liot water, as thus delivered into the upper part of the tank.I can be drawn ofi' from the upper part of the tank, but it is not necessary to wait until the whole body of waterl has been heated to the desired hot water temperature.

Thus it will be seen that l have produced a household water heater that is of relatively simple structure, capable of being easily and cheaply produced. and which may be economically used for the comparatively rapid heating of water.

lt will be understood that minor changes in the size, form and construction of the various parts of my improved water heater may be inade and substituted for those heren in described without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended elaineA lll() imams lt claim as my invention:

ln a Water heater, the combination with a vertically disposed tank having a central opening in its top and bottom ends and n means for maintaining the tank ull of Water,

of a heating due vertically positioned within the tank and having communication with said open ends, said flue having uniform di ameter throughout its length, an open-ended tubular member having a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the flue arranged within said tank and enclosing the greater portion of the flue with its ends 'terminating at apoint spaced a substantial distance from said ends of the tank, a combined spacing, partition and tube supporting member spirally arranged Within the narrow space between the iue and tube and engaging said iue and tube whereby to support the tube on the Hue and dividing said space into a continuous restricted water circulating duct that extends from the open lower end of the Hue-enclosing tube to the open upper end thereof, whereby all ot the water entering the lower end of said duct may flow uninterrupted from the lower portion ot the body ot water in the tank to the upperportion of said body of water, and a burner extending through the opening in the lower end ot the tank and into the lower end of the iiue.

In testimony whereof l have signed my name to this specification.. l

LUIS W. SCHNEPP. 

